Death Wobble

[shintoooo]

Well, I picked up the car and drove it on the freeway to pick up my daughter from school and it happened again. Twice on the way there and twice on the way back home.

I do need new tires but they’re not bald or anything. Could tires be the reason? That just doesn’t make sense to me. I’ve owned many cars and drove on bald tires when I was broke and this never happened.

What’s the consensus? I feel like I should sell the car and move on. I don’t think a three year old car with 33K miles should have these issues.

 

[Hava-Schiada]

I have a 2019 4dr Rubicon. Have not experienced this issue, but have been watching from the day I bought it. Seems to be common. In 2020, brought it in for the recall to correct it. I don’t trust FCA or any of their dealers.

 

[pronstar]

Honestly I think a look-see from a reputable Jeep shop will address the problem snd fix it.

But I think it will always be in the back of your mind that it could happen again...so you have to consider what your peace of mind is worth.
Especially when your wife and kids are out driving it.

 

[Your ad here]

Well, I picked up the car and drove it on the freeway to pick up my daughter from school and it happened again. Twice on the way there and twice on the way back home.

I do need new tires but they’re not bald or anything. Could tires be the reason? That just doesn’t make sense to me. I’ve owned many cars and drove on bald tires when I was broke and this never happened.

What’s the consensus? I feel like I should sell the car and move on. I don’t think a three year old car with 33K miles should have these issues.

It's not tread wear that is causing the problem. It's the belts breaking and causing the tire to go egg shaped. Egg shaped tires cause problems. Nittos and BFGs are notorious for this. Sister had a F250 death shake violently. BFG tires had less than 12k miles and were the problem. Bad tires cause problems.
If a broken belt tire causes wheel hop and axle shake on a trailer, think of what it's doing to a steering axle. The problem isn't the steering stabilizer as they don't install those on trailers to fix that axle shake.
Steering stabilizers are a band aid, really just don't do anything, and are worthless. Steering problems are from bad engineering. Steering stabilizer doesn't correct engineering mistakes. Get new tires on it or at least have the dealer confirm the condition of the tires and have them show you the balancing sheet.

 

[Member: 71]

Well, I picked up the car and drove it on the freeway to pick up my daughter from school and it happened again. Twice on the way there and twice on the way back home.

I do need new tires but they’re not bald or anything. Could tires be the reason? That just doesn’t make sense to me. I’ve owned many cars and drove on bald tires when I was broke and this never happened.

What’s the consensus? I feel like I should sell the car and move on. I don’t think a three year old car with 33K miles should have these issues.

Strike 3. Trade that thing in.

 

[4Waters]

@shintoooo call Genright here in Simi and see what they have to say.

Jeep Parts | Jeep Wrangler Parts Online | Aftermarket Jeep Parts and Accessories

Jeep Wrangler Off Road Parts and Accessories available online from world leading manufacturer GenRight Offroad. Call 805-584-8635

genright.com

 

[shintoooo]

@shintoooo call Genright here in Simi and see what they have to say.

Jeep Parts | Jeep Wrangler Parts Online | Aftermarket Jeep Parts and Accessories

Jeep Wrangler Off Road Parts and Accessories available online from world leading manufacturer GenRight Offroad. Call 805-584-8635

genright.com

I just don’t think it’s right for me to spend money on a car that’s only three years old and low miles just on principle. I think the manufacturer should handle this but they won’t.

 

[4Waters]

I just don’t think it’s right for me to spend money on a car that’s only three years old and low miles just on principal. I think the manufacturer should handle this but they won’t.

I get that, don't go crazy just see what they say, they may tell you it's the tires or something else, tires are an easy fix.

 

[Flying_Lavey]

I just don’t think it’s right for me to spend money on a car that’s only three years old and low miles just on principle. I think the manufacturer should handle this but they won’t.

You are correct on both accounts. Problem is..... its a Fiat.....er I mean Jeep. First, Fix It Again Tony is a saying for a reason, and second, they aren't used to customers actually wearing out the original tires and suspension components, or even putting enough miles on them (even without wearing anything out) to get these issues so they are used to looking for reason to NOT properly repair, along with financial ones.


And, I'll say it...... does the carpet get better mileage anyways?

 

[mbrown2]

It's not tread wear that is causing the problem. It's the belts breaking and causing the tire to go egg shaped. Egg shaped tires cause problems. Nittos and BFGs are notorious for this. Sister had a F250 death shake violently. BFG tires had less than 12k miles and were the problem. Bad tires cause problems. If a broken belt tire causes wheel hop and axle shake on a trailer, think of what it's doing to a steering axle. The problem isn't the steering stabilizer as they don't install those on trailers to fix that axle shake.
Steering stabilizers are a band aid, really just don't do anything, and are worthless. Steering problems are from bad engineering. Steering stabilizer doesn't correct engineering mistakes. Get new tires on it.

I too was thinking it was the egg shape as my 2018 JL Rubi developed on one of the fronts... However, I would have thought the dealership would have ruled that out....

If they have not found it now...then I would get rid of it... After my JL, I purchased a 2021 JT Diesel Glad... it spent 200+ days in the shop for the 400+ days I owned it.... until they wrote me a check for every cent I put in that vehicle...ie: buy back... I am so sour on jeep's these days...even though I will some day have another...

 

[Ricks raft]

I had a brand new 2019 Ford F250 Super Duty. I really liked the truck but, the first death wobble event was at 15,000 miles. Took it back to the local dealer I bought it from and they said Ford has no fix for it. BS. I did a Google search and page after page of death wobble Ford Trucks. Finally found by myself a Ford service bulletin that said Ford will replace the stabilizer and add 1 degree of caster with a shim. More caster will fix it but when the parts showed up at the dealer there was only the stabilizer and a note saying they no longer supply the shim. No explanation. The stabilizer did nothing to fix it, I still had it go into a death wobble a number of times after that. I ended up getting a Lemon Law Lawyer. Just last month, yea it took a while, but they got Ford to agree to a settlement. They payed off the truck, took it back and gave me a check for 35k. I bought a Goofey looking Jeep Gladiator. Love it but sure hope no death wobble issues.

Friend of mine has the same truck, same problem. Been dealing with lemon law for 2 years now…

 

[Xtrmwakeboarder]

Dump it and get the CPA’s version of the 4Runner

 

[Joker]

At least take the thing to a good tire balance shop that handles over sized tires. Worst case scenario they say it’s not the tires but that’s the cheapest starting point.

 

[Gelcoater]

Yes it just happened. Twice.

It’s under warranty and dealer said they would fix it. I’m gonna get it fixed and talk my wife into selling it. She loves her Jeep. Has always wanted one but she will get rid of it if it makes me feel better.

If it’s under warranty keep taking it back.

If they can’t resolve it couldn’t you Lemon law the thing?

 

[Singleton]

I just don’t think it’s right for me to spend money on a car that’s only three years old and low miles just on principle. I think the manufacturer should handle this but they won’t.

Jeep dealerships dont know how to fix them, most Jeep dealers only know how to change fluids. Took my Jeep in for an issue under warranty (stereo related) and dealer refused to touch it since I had an sPOD connected to battery for accessories. Disconnected sPod and then dealership would work on Jeep, after I had to reschedule the appointment.

It’s a used Jeep, so you don’t know what the prior owner(s) did with it.
A steering dampener does not resolve the issue, it only hides it.

• have dealership perform an alignment under warranty
• get tires balanced and rotated. Jeeps are sensitive to tire wear. Don’t have the dealership do it, Discount/American Tire for anything 35 and under. Over 35’s - you need a off-road shop.
• take it to an off-road shop that works on Jeeps and have them inspect front-end steering and suspension components. dealerships will not put a wrench to all bolts, an off-road shop will
• once fixed, take all receipt to Service Director at dealership and request a reimbursement

 

[shintoooo]

Going to put a new set of tires on today and have it balanced and see if that does anything. Will report back.

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Going to put a new set of tires on today and have it balanced and see if that does anything. Will report back.

JEEP - Just Empty Every Pocket.

 

[calkid]

I've had 4x4s (primarily Jeeps) for the past 45 years. Everything is suspect if it's used like a Jeep, from tie rod ends to frame cracks at the steering box. Tires are the number one issue. We take a relatively light and short vehicle, change the engineered steering geometry and put the biggest fucking tires we can on it. As was mentioned above, if it's being used as a Jeep the tires will break down internally. If everything has been checked and new tires installed and balanced properly, take it to a reputable off road shop and have them add a few degrees of positive caster to it. Most shops use the factory alignment settings, once we add lift kits and other crap those factory specs go out the window. Adding some positive caster will usually fix the problem.

 

[FreeBird236]

Going to put a new set of tires on today and have it balanced and see if that does anything. Will report back.

Not exactly your area, but Pruett's in Redlands would be where I would try for front end and alignment work.

 

[Backlash]

34 years old, 179,000 miles......no death wobble here. Jeeps......psssht.

 

[Outdrive1]

I just don’t think it’s right for me to spend money on a car that’s only three years old and low miles just on principle. I think the manufacturer should handle this but they won’t.

Tires are a wear item. So are shocks.

Change both and report back.

 

[Cole Trickle]

Going to put a new set of tires on today and have it balanced and see if that does anything. Will report back.

Search fb marketplace for some new rubicon take offs. For 1k you should be able to get rims/tires and then just swap over the tpms sensors.

They will look better and be cheaper than just tires and you can sell what you have for a couple hundred.

30k miles on original tires is a bunch. New tires and alignment and check the tq settings of the arms and track bar as well as drag link.

I’m going to be ripping all my stuff off in the next couple weeks but I’m a little far and you don’t want to wait…lol

 

[DaveC]

I get it Jeeps are cool but she is a CPAs wife…why isn’t she rolling a benz or BMW SUV………. Come on man

 

[Sportin' Wood]

We bought my wife a used 2019 Jeep Wrangler last year with 20K miles. We're on the freeway this past Friday and I'm driving at around 65 and the steering wheel starts to shake violently and feels like I'm going over crazy bumps but the freeway surface is smooth. I slow down and it stops. 10 minutes later at 60 mph and holy shit it starts again. I'm freaking out like wtf is this. Then I remember hearing the term "Death Wobble" a few years back. My wife looks it up and it's exactly what was happening. I told her I'm getting rid of this piece of shit next week. She called the dealer and we're taking it in as it's still under warranty and they have a "fix" and will repair it.

I did some research and it looks like it still happens, even after the fix. Anyone else go through this? I don't want my wife or kids driving this car. It's scary when you're driving fast and this shit happens. By the way, it happened again yesterday when my wife was driving.

I've not read the three pages. We have owned so many Jeeps since 1989 we lost count. I would Take it back. Sorry if this has been covered.

My last JK soiled me on Jeep. I don't care for the three-link suspension design. With 35s and a Teraflex/AEV hybrid with sway-a-way triple bypass shocks, the jeep developed death wobble shortly after the modifications. The terrain in Northern Nevada compounded the problem. Driving fast over nuisance rocks is hard on stuff, but I was chasing the problem non-stop, and it made me lose confidence in the vehicle when driving on the mountain roads.

The best way to find it if you decide to keep it is to remove the stabilizer, have a friend saw the steering wheel back and forth, and put your hand on every steering component until you feel the clunk. You can find the worn parts pretty fast that way. Mine ate up everything and required a lot of maintenance. I eventually switched to heim joints from ball joints and ultimately had to use weld washers to fix the holes from elongating.

 

[shintoooo]

I get it Jeeps are cool but she is a CPAs wife…why isn’t she rolling a benz or BMW SUV………. Come on man

She was rolling a Benz. She wanted a Jeep.

 

[rivermobster]

I get it Jeeps are cool but she is a CPAs wife…why isn’t she rolling a benz or BMW SUV………. Come on man

This was gonna be my suggestion as well...

ML350 BlueTEC. 4x4 Diesel. 30+ mpg.

Pick up a used one cheap, and get to the river on half a tank of fuel going 90 the whole way. Super comfy, super quiet.

2014 Mercedes-Benz ML350 Bluetec First Test - Motor Trend

We got our hands on a 2014 Mercedes ML350 Bluetec to see if it could check a few more boxes.

www.motortrend.com

 

[pronstar]

She was rolling a Benz. She wanted a Jeep.

Jeep + Benz =

 

[pronstar]

G-Class lease deals with $2k down…plus it has a GVWR of over 6k lbs so bonus depreciation if you buy!

 

[mbrown2]

I get it Jeeps are cool but she is a CPAs wife…why isn’t she rolling a benz or BMW SUV………. Come on man

Keep them humble...

 

[shintoooo]

Keep them humble...

She drove a Mercedes and never really liked it. She's not into luxury cars. She would rather have a Jeep or a 4runner or something similar. That's why I married her.

 

[4Waters]

She drove a Mercedes and never really liked it. She's not into luxury cars. She would rather have a Jeep or a 4runner or something similar. That's why I married her.

And who knew that would actually turn into a problem

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

G-Class lease deals with $2k down…plus it has a GVWR of over 6k lbs so bonus depreciation if you buy!

View attachment 1166444

Have you seen the G Wagon market tanking?? They were like $80k+ markup last year

There is some dealer in the midwest sitting on $9m worth of G Wagons that they bought speculating the values would continue to go up in Jan and Feb.

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

And who knew that would actually turn into a problem

I knew the Jeep (Fiat) would be turn into problem and so did you

 

[mbrown2]

She drove a Mercedes and never really liked it. She's not into luxury cars. She would rather have a Jeep or a 4runner or something similar. That's why I married her.

I was joking...but same here......My better half drove a Porsche...and now she drives a Subaru.... the porsche was not as good as the Subi in snow..so she said I will drive the Subi..get rid of the Porsche...

 

[Cole Trickle]

Over a million jeep jl's built since 2018 and this thread is acting like everyone has death wobble...lol

Tires are bad/steering stabilizer and shocks are worn or perhaps the alignment got messed up bumping a curb or something.

I think they also have a recall for the non steel steering box on the early models that can cause issues.

If Shintoo lived next door i already would have fixed it for him. Its an easy fix and it will go another 30k miles once someone that knows what they are doing touches it.

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Over a million jeep jl's built since 2018 and this thread is acting like everyone has death wobble...lol

Tires are bad/steering stabilizer and shocks are worn or perhaps the alignment got messed up bumping a curb or something.

I think they also have a recall for the non steel steering box on the early models that can cause issues.

If Shintoo lived next door i already would have fixed it for him. Its an easy fix and it will go another 30k miles once someone that knows what they are doing touches it.

If the steering box isn't steel.. what is it?

 

[Cole Trickle]

If the steering box isn't steel.. what is it?

In 2021 the aluminum steering gears were replaced with steel.

not the whole casting.

 

[Outdrive1]

Please play this next time you’re on the freeway.

 

[shintoooo]

Over a million jeep jl's built since 2018 and this thread is acting like everyone has death wobble...lol

Tires are bad/steering stabilizer and shocks are worn or perhaps the alignment got messed up bumping a curb or something.

I think they also have a recall for the non steel steering box on the early models that can cause issues.

If Shintoo lived next door i already would have fixed it for him. Its an easy fix and it will go another 30k miles once someone that knows what they are doing touches it.

Come on over. I'll have a toaster waiting for you.

 

[Backlash]

Get her a 4Runner. Tried and true, and reliable as anything else made.

 

[shintoooo]

Get her a 4Runner. Tried and true, and reliable as anything else made.

That's where this is headed. Showed her the Lexus GX460 and she doesn't like it. Not as sporty as the 4runner. Looking at the TRD Off-Road Premium.

 

[Backlash]

One and done.

 

[CLdrinker]

My JK had horrible castor when I bought it. You had to drive with 2 hands on the freeway, it was all over the place.

Installed longer lower control arms and it drove great.

Since this Jeep is stock with worn tires. I bet tires are the problem.
If not that it’s a worn suspension component somewhere.

Otherwise it would have done this from day one.

 

[Sportin' Wood]

Going to put a new set of tires on today and have it balanced and see if that does anything. Will report back.

I strongly urge the simple test of removing the stabilizer and putting your hands on (near) all the steering components while someone turns the steering wheel back and forth (engine running), stopping just as the tires start to move. You will find a worn-out part quickly with this test. You may find more than one. The stabilizer masks the root cause. Replacing it is like a bandaid on an axe wound.

I have seen the track bar connection point holes get compromised and the bolt sloppy.

We had to run shoulder bolts cut down to the correct length in our JK as the threads in the hole would smash and allow a slight movement.

Since the vehicle is stock, the caster should be correct, but if you lift it, ensure it is addressed correctly. Did someone slip a leveling puck into the spring stack?

 

[575cat]

Even 1 ton trac bar,s flex badly , rubber bushing,s turn to mush when heated up during drive cycle,s , death wobble mostly get set off from the pass tire hitting a pot hole or large crack or seam in the road and away we go like someone hitting the tire with a large sledge to get it started .

 

[shintoooo]

I strongly urge the simple test of removing the stabilizer and putting your hands on (near) all the steering components while someone turns the steering wheel back and forth (engine running), stopping just as the tires start to move. You will find a worn-out part quickly with this test. You may find more than one. The stabilizer masks the root cause. Replacing it is like a bandaid on an axe wound.

I have seen the track bar connection point holes get compromised and the bolt sloppy.

We had to run shoulder bolts cut down to the correct length in our JK as the threads in the hole would smash and allow a slight movement.

Since the vehicle is stock, the caster should be correct, but if you lift it, ensure it is addressed correctly. Did someone slip a leveling puck into the spring stack?

I would do all this but I'm just an accountant and I might get my hands dirty and break a nail.

 

[Cole Trickle]

I would do all this but I'm just an accountant and I might get my hands dirty and break a nail.

G Wagon - G Wagon - G Wagon!!!

 

[SKIDMARC]

Get rid of the POS. I seem to hear mainly Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge have these problems. They all have something in common. I'm sure its happened to other makes, but I constantly hear about these makes having it happened.

 

[rivermobster]

G Wagon - G Wagon - G Wagon!!!

I swear...

That has to be the FUGLIEST automobile that has Ever graced this planet. Boggles my mind how anyone could own one of those things!

 

[shintoooo]

Here’s the new steering damper.

Getting new shoes.